Every morning, Jenni Bick jots down five things she wants to accomplish.
鈥淢y list always gets longer as the day goes on, but if I get those five things done, I鈥檓 good. If I get more done, it鈥檚 a bonus,鈥 says Bick, CAS/BA 鈥90.聽
She鈥檚 applied the same practical philosophy to building her business, Jenni Bick Custom Journals. The company was born in 1990 at her kitchen table in Annandale, Virginia, where she meticulously crafted photo albums and journals by hand. After years of working the craft fair circuit up and down the East Coast with three toddlers in tow, Bick and her husband, Robby, launched their online store in 2000.聽
As the Internet grew, so too did their business. 鈥淥ur teensy sliver of the pie has gotten a little bigger every year,鈥 Bick says.聽
But the couple, who鈥檝e been married for 31 years and have never not worked together, were hankering for a new challenge. 鈥淲e hit a ceiling online. We鈥檙e never going to be Amazon, nor do we want to be. But in order to expand our business we had to try something radically different: a brick-and-mortar location,鈥 says Bick, who moved back to Washington from Martha鈥檚 Vineyard in 2017.
Tucked off Connecticut Avenue in bustling Dupont Circle, the store鈥攚hich opened in May 2017鈥攈as been an education of sorts for Bick. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an entirely new business to me, even though I鈥檝e been 鈥榠n the business,鈥 with the same name and selling the same product for 25 years,鈥 she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 cool to see our digital brand manifested in a physical way. It鈥檚 really energized me.鈥
The airy, 2,000-square-foot retail space is a paper lover鈥檚 paradise, offering the largest selection of journals in the capital city. The store is bursting with notebooks, notepads, and notecards; calendars and planners; gift wrap and greeting cards鈥攎any from DC brands like Cherry Blossom Creative and The Card Bureau that Bick discovers on Instagram or Pinterest. 鈥淚 love seeking out little startups that are where we were 25 years ago,鈥 she says.
An entire wall is devoted to colorful pens and the occasional foil-stamped pencil (鈥淪tationery with an e,鈥 reads one). Customers are encouraged to test different tips and hues on a display featuring several dozen open journals, framed by paper flowers and a sign that reads 鈥渢he write place.鈥
The shop has an aspirational feel to it. From the display of bullet journals (the hottest thing since scrapbooking, Bick says) to the inspirational quotes on the walls (鈥淟et me live, love, and say it well in good sentences,鈥 reads one by poet Sylvia Plath), the store makes customers not only feel like they can tame chaos in their lives鈥攂ut that they can do so in style.
鈥淐rossing something off our to-do list is deeply satisfying,鈥 Bick says. 鈥淚t scratches an itch for all of us.鈥
While the shop carries popular brands like Moleskine, Leuchtturm1917, and Rhodia, it鈥檚 truly a showroom for the line that bears Bick鈥檚 name.聽
Her one-of-a-kind journals feature a curated selection of paper鈥攆rom slips of lokta made from daphne plants in the Himalayas to Japanese rice paper鈥攅nveloped by a single piece of supple calfskin, hand-dyed at a tannery in Lynchburg, Virginia. The journals start at $100 and are hand-stitched and tied with ribbon. Like virtually everything else in the store, they can be personalized on-site with the hot stamp embossing machine, set to exactly 245 degrees.聽
鈥淲e do it all鈥攊nitials, poetry verses, swear words,鈥 laughs Bick. 鈥淵ou never know what鈥檚 going to inspire people.鈥
Her collection also includes the bestselling Harborview journal; its simplicity stands in stark contrast to her early designs, which were adorned with bookmarks, charms, and embroidery. 鈥淢y taste, and that of my customers, has grown more sophisticated 鈥╫ver the years,鈥 she says.
The notebook starts at $32 and comes in 14 colors. Mocha is a perennial favorite; jewel tones like emerald and violet do well in fall, while lighter hues like sage and sky blue are hottest in summer.
Choosing a color is the easy part. Filling those empty pages鈥攚ith memories, sketches, simple to-do鈥檚, or deep, dark secrets鈥攊s an exercise in creativity and self-reflection that takes time, care, and commitment.聽
鈥淚鈥檝e always loved being surrounded by books,鈥 Bick says. 鈥淭hese are different kinds of books because there are no words in them yet鈥攕o the possibilities are limitless.鈥